New Zealand Times. WEDNESDAY, JULY 15, 1874.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 4155, 15 July 1874, Page 2

New Zealand Times. WEDNESDAY, JULY 15, 1874.

The position and privileges of the civil servants of the Colony may not appear to be of much concern to many persons besides thoso who are employed by the Government, except so far as the amount payable for departmental purposes is affected under each succeeding Appropriation Act. A close examination of the conduct of public affairs would, however, show every candid inquirer that, whatever party is in power, though the policy of the country may vary with political changes, the daily work of administration, which is after all the most important, if not the most showy function of every Government, must be carried on chiefly by men 'who are independent of the rise or fall of Ministries, arid who are called upon, whenever a change occurs, to instruct in their duties many of those under whose ordors they are placed. Hence arises an obvious necessity for securing a body of men sufficiently assured of their position to preserve them from temptation to fawning subserviency lest : their offices should bo in danger, and, on the other hand, so far under the control of Ministers as to leave it opon in time of need to clear the service of those who scheme to render nothing moro than eye service, and aro guilty of worse than disobedience, though maintaining a literal observance of rule 3. The Acts under which appointments in the Civil Service aro regulated havo been in many rospects found too cumbrous and inelastic to suit the rapid change of circumstances continually taking place in a young and thriving Colony. Framed on the model of thoso existing in other countries, without in all things considering how far and in what respect our requirements are different, the service, that should havo been capablo of adapting itself to every stage of progress, has becomo a mere petrifaction, offering little inducement to the capablo and industrious, and providing ample shelter for tho indolent and incompetent. When a civil servant displays i anything like zeal in his office, and is able iby willing effort and intelligence to get through a larger amount of work than his fellows, he must be prepared not for promotion but for persecution. By oxactly so much as he excels others in qu»ntity or quality of work, does ho

convict them of being deficient in some one or more useful qualities. While his pergonal comfort will certainly not be increased, his chance of advancement is to some extent lessened. Not indeed that very much can be done in that direction. The system of classification in force in the Customs and largely acted upon, though not formally adopted in other departments, throws its shield over him in common with the idlers he has offended. Instances are well-known where men employed by the Government have been, not simply contented with" contriving to do as little as possible, but actively engaged in the practice of open and unblushing profligacy, and yet for years it has been impossible to obtain such evidence as would satisfy the Board of Civil Servants before whom the cases must be heard previous to dismissal. This is a state of tilings that no private employer would suffer to continue for a day, and the Government does well to ask Parliament to deal with it, spite of a similar measure having been, mainly on this ground, last year rejected by the Legislative Council. The Government Bill divides-into two parts ; the first, of which we have spoken, is for the protection of the public by the abolition of classification, and restoring the power to enforce proper discipline ; while the second, for the re-establishment of a scheme of retiring allowances, is mainly in the interest of the officers, distasteful as some of its provisions are understood to be to many of them. There was scarcely a single contest at the last general election where candidates were not called upon to give distinct pledges against the pension system as then existing. It was well known that it had been commenced in consequence of a report from several civil servants, and no little stress was laid on the fact of their recommendations being calculated to serve their o svn interests. Wherever tho gentlemen who signed the report aro known, no weight is given to the imputation of selfseeking. Still it must be conceded that a leaning to those with whom they were acting, and by whom they were looked up to for protection, must have greatly, even if unconsciously, influenced the Commissioners. In the debate on Civil Service Pensions in 1871, Mr. Stafford stated that, " When the Bill was originally framed it was his intention that there should be a per-centage deducted from the salaries for the purpose of forming a pension fund"; and, further on, he said, " Upon a review of the whole case, he was sorry that ho had given up his original idea." The Government is further fortified by the report of a committee of last session, which recommended the return to a system of pensions, but with this vital difference from the old Acts, that they should be provided by deductions from salaries, and be in fadt a compulsory mutual insurance to furnish retiring allowances. Many persons are of opinion that such arrangements should be left to the officers themselves, but the interest and good repute of the public service would be considerably affected in cases where no provision was made. An officer once efficient and known to be poor could hardly be dismissed to starvation, even when he had long ceased to be capable of doing his duty. Nor would it be creditable to see any persons who had been in the Government service reduced to poverty when the time came for retirement. Many officers might be trusted to provide for themselves, but a large proportion live fully up to their incomes, and when no longer useful, must either be permitted to encumber the service or become objects of charity. It is' therefore desirable to compel such action by the careless and improvident as the more thoughtful would take for themselves. The Colony is carefully guarded against having any excessive payment to make, and the experience of the English Civil Service proves that with the higher rate of interest prevailing here, the amount will bo quite ample without either further taxing the salaries or imposing a burden on the Consolidated Fund. It will be well for the service to abstain from all efforts to influence vote 3 against the Bill. The terms proposed by the Government are fair. They are the outcome of long deliberation by a committee, and if they are now rejected the loss will be that of the Government officers themselves.